Page 5 of Double Play

The corner of her mouth raises. It’s adorable. “Give me your worst, superstar. What’s the cheesiest line you’ve ever used?”

“Hmm. Let me think.” I scratch my chin. “I’ve got one.Well, here I am. What are your other two wishes?”

She snort-laughs again. “Oh my god. That’s terrible. Women don’t fall for that, do they?”

I grin. “You’d be surprised how often it works. God, I love your laugh. It’s so genuine.”

Something in her face softens. I think I’m making headway.

A slower song begins to play. It’s “Until I Found You” by Stephen Sanchez. I hold out my arms. “One more dance? I promise I won’t bite…unless you want me to.”

She rolls her eyes. “I told you, I’m not into baseball players.”

“Why is that?”

“You’re all inherently selfish. Career and libido above all else. I know your reputation. You’re the worst of themall, love them and leave them Layton. Or wait, what’s the hashtag?” She smiles. “Laidbylayton. I have no interest in being one of your many hashtags. I’m not a one-night-stand person. You are. Go find someone who’s interested.”

“How about one more dance to prove you wrong? If I fail, I won’t bother you again. I promise I’ll leave you alone after that unless you ask me to stay.”

She sighs. “One last dance and then you promise to leave me alone? For real?”

“If that’s what you want, yes.”

She nods and I pull her into my arms. It’s hard to hear over the music, but I think she sighs. I can definitely feel her relax into me.

I’m enjoying the sensation of her body on mine. I’m usually staring at the top of a woman’s head when dancing, but not with her. She’s not even wearing heels, but I can still sink my nose into her neck and take her in.

She tilts her head ever so slightly, giving me more access. I don’t think it was a conscious move, but it happens. All hope is not lost. She’s attracted to me; she just doesn’t like my reputation. I can work with that.

Our bodies are pressed together, her arms around my neck. I whisper in her ear, “You’re so beautiful.”

She squeezes me a bit tighter. I can feel her breasts pushing against my body. I can’t truly see her body in the oversized clothes she’s wearing, but I’m dying to explore every inch of her.

The song ends and a fast one starts playing, but we don’t stop moving as we were. We continue to sway to the slow beat of the previous song, lost in our own world.

She looks up at me. “I shouldn’t admit this, but I think I’ll blame it on the three drinks I’ve had tonight.When I was a teenager, I had a poster of you above my bed. You were my favorite ballplayer.”

I can’t help but feel good about that revelation. “Were, as in past tense?”

She hiccups at the same time she says, “Yep,” and then snort-laughs again. She’s definitely had a few drinks.

“I’m determined to win you back as a fan.”

She smiles. It’s so damn perfect. We stare at each other. We’re having a moment. I know she feels it too.

My nose moves along her cheek until I reach her lips. I give her a soft kiss and she allows it. I’m about to push the kiss further when the music comes to an abrupt stop.

The owner takes the microphone and looks straight at me. “Boys, check out the televisions.”

He motions for the bartender to turn up the volume. The televisions in this bar only play sports channels. They’re all tuned to ESPN, which has something scrolling about breaking news from the Cougars organization.

I pull away from Arizona and look at the screen. Before I know it, Harold Greene, the elderly owner of the team, takes the podium.

“Good evening, everyone. What I’m about to say may come as a shock to most of you, but after careful consideration of both my failing health and my family’s wishes, we have decided to sell the Cougars.”

Holy. Shit. I turn and look at my teammates. They appear as stunned as I am right now.

He continues,

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